Who cares for the kids when parents die?

Kiera Coyle, second right with her son Riley, went to court to get legal guardianship of her brother Colm and sister Caoimhe.

Who will look after our children if both of us die? It is a question most parents ponder but rarely consider seriously.

However, a family from Cumbria has moved the nation by speaking of the pressing need to decide who will care for their children.

Clare Coulston, 39, was diagnosed with oesophageal cancer in 2009 and has been given only a 30 per cent chance of survival. Three years later, her husband Paul was diagnosed with motor neurone disease. They have two children, Evelyn, 7, and Finlay, aged 9. This week Mr Coulston died suddenly, aged just 40, making the heart-breaking decision all the more pressing.

Their case is rare, but not unique. Children are still orphaned, with members of the extended family usually stepping…